Tweeter Speakers

What Are Twitter Speakers?

Tweeter speakers are basically the audio drivers in a speaker system capable of producing the upper range of sound you hear. Since higher sound frequencies have smaller sound waves, their size is smaller than the other speakers in a speaker system. A tweeter can be described as a type of electromechanical loudspeaker which produces sound and music in the upper (higher frequency) music range. They compliment woofers and other speakers who are incapable of producing higher-pitched sounds. Tweeters are generally small, producing smaller-wavelength audio and having a small cone. Most are limited to a specific range of audio production, such as a maximum of 3 kilohertz to 20 kilohertz (kHz). However, it depends on the particular speaker's limitations.

Electrodynamic Drivers

Nearly all tweeter speakers are electrodynamic drivers using a voice coil suspended within a fixed magnetic field. These designs operate by applying current from the output of an amplifier circuit to a coil of wire called a voice coil. The voice coil produces a varying magnetic field, which works against the fixed magnetic field of a magnet, forcing the voice coil and the diaphragm to move. This mechanical movement resembles the waveform of the electronic signal supplied from the amplifier's output to the voice coil. Because of the coil's connection to a diaphragm, the vibratory motion of the voice coil transmits to the diaphragm; the diaphragm, in turn, vibrates the air, thus creating air motions, audio waves, or high sounds.

Modern Tweeter Speakers

Modern tweeters are typically different from older tweeters, usually small versions of woofers. As tweeter technology has advanced, different design applications have become popular. Many soft-dome tweeter diaphragms are thermoformed from polyester film, silk, or polyester fabric impregnated with a polymer resin. Furthermore, hard dome tweeters usually consist of aluminum, aluminum-magnesium alloys, or titanium.

Converting the Electrical Signal

Tweeters usually need to convert an electrical signal into mechanical air movement with nothing added or subtracted, but the process is imperfect, and real-world tweeters involve tradeoffs. Among the challenges in tweeter design and manufacture are providing adequate damping to stop the dome's motion rapidly when the signal ends; ensuring suspension linearity, allowing high output at the low end of its frequency range; ensuring freedom from contact with the magnet assembly, keeping the dome centered as it moves; and providing adequate power handling without adding excessive mass. Tweeters can also collaborate with the woofers responsible for generating the low frequencies or bass.

Super and Novel Egg Tweeters

Some tweeters sit outside the main enclosure in their semi-independent unit. Examples include "super tweeters and the novel "egg tweeter" by Ohm. Depending on listener position and user preference, the latter plugs in and swivels to adjust the sound field. The separation from the baffle is optimal under the theory that the smallest baffle possible is optimal for tweeters.